Run Lola Run (Lola Rennt)

Rating:	★★★★★
Category:	Movies
Genre:	Foreign

A Review of Run Lola Run
Lola rennt
A film by Tom Tykwer

Review by Symonette Lim


I've always been intrigued by the movie "Run Lola Run". Ever since it was mentioned that it was actress Franka Potente's break-out role, the role that made the producers of Bourne Identity notice her. And I really liked the Bourne Identity (the movie and the book), so it was only natural that Run Lola Run would interest me. But Bourne Identity, and Potente’s next movie, Bourne Supremacy, is another story altogether.

"Lola Rennt", or "Run Lola Run", is a German film directed by Tom Tykwer and starred in by his then-girlfriend, Franka Potente. She plays the role of Lola, who must come up with 100,000 marks within 20 minutes to save her boyfriend's life. Because of a series of minor unfortunate events, Lola’s boyfriend Manni lost the 100,000 marks that he must return to his gangster bosses. He calls Lola, and Lola must think of ways to come up with the money and be with Manni, all before 12 noon, or Manni dies.

And so Lola runs.

The opening credits shows goth clocks and timepieces, and for a moment there, I am thinking that this is an old-school European type of horror film. But the next sequences quickly get into the frenzied MTV-style pacing of the rest of the movie. Animated sequences to show Lola racing down her building steps are a clever device, and the adage “A picture is worth a thousand words” is perfectly apt to describe the quick picture montages used to tell the life stories of the people she bumps into. In a film that seemingly borders on a superficial music-video-type of energy, the value and consequence of every single second is explored and realized. Lola gets to repeat those crucial 20 minutes over and over, and each instance is different simply because of a few second’s difference.

In one instance, she trips over the stairs, and because of that delay, her dad’s mistress gets to succeed in telling him that she was pregnant, but it was not his baby. The other instances only had her telling him she was pregnant, and him assuming that it was his baby. The truths and half-truths in that storyline is interesting, and the value of time and how we react to certain information is interesting.

The segue to each instance is nothing short of clever. Sequence editing was exceptional, and we are able to empathize with Lola and Manni’s predicament. Romantic moments between the couple is shown balanced, one with Lola’s relationship dramas, and the other Manni’s. The musical score is brilliant, completely aiding the viewer in “feeling” the movie’s energy and vitality.

After watching the movie, I wanted to go to the gym. That was how effective the movie was in showing Lola running. But despite the frenzied pacing, the storyline between the two main characters was not neglected, and the two lead actors successfully act out their roles. Writer, director and composer Tom Tykwer is in his element here, and the clever plot twists, interesting story line, editing, music, and casting all add up to a great movie.

All in all, a clever and satisfying fun ride.